The
defendant, Donald Javon Ross, was charged by bill of
information with armed robbery with the use of a firearm, a
violation of Louisiana Revised Statutes 14:64 and l4:64.3(A)
(count one), and possession with intent to distribute a
Schedule I controlled dangerous substance (marijuana), a
violation of Louisiana Revised Statutes 4O:966(A)(1). He pled
not guilty to both counts and filed a motion to suppress his
confession, which was denied. Following a jury trial, the
defendant was found guilty as charged on both counts. He
filed a motion for postverdict judgment of acquittal, which
was denied.

The
defendant was then sentenced to a term of imprisonment of
twenty years at hard labor without the benefit of probation,
parole, or suspension of sentence with an additional penalty
of five years at hard labor without the benefit of probation,
parole, or suspension of sentence pursuant to Section
l4:64.3(A) on count one. On count two, the defendant was
sentenced to five years at hard labor. The court ordered the
sentences on counts one and two to run concurrently. The
defendant filed a motion to reconsider sentence. The district
court then amended the defendant's sentence as to count
one, ordering that the defendant serve fifteen years at hard
labor with an additional penalty of five years pursuant to
Section l4:64.3(A), for a total of twenty years imprisonment
at hard labor without the benefit of parole, probation, or
suspension of sentence.[1] The district court ordered the amended
sentence on count one to run concurrently with the previously
imposed sentence on count two. The State orally objected to
the amended sentence and made an oral motion to reconsider
sentence, which was subsequently dismissed by the State's
motion. The defendant now appeals, challenging the denial of
his motion to suppress. For the following reasons, we affirm
the defendant's convictions and sentences.

FACTS

On
February 19, 2015, shortly after 10:00 a.m., Deputy Carter
Fontenot with the Terrebonne Parish Sheriffs Office responded
to an armed robbery call at a Chevron gas station located at
5912 West Main Street in Houma, Louisiana. Upon arrival,
Deputy Fontenot made contact with Abdulla Hussein, the
victim, who provided a description of the offender as well as
a license plate number of the vehicle that he observed
leaving the gas station. The victim indicated that he
believed, but was not positive, that the offender was the
same person who had come into the store approximately thirty
minutes prior to the robbery to purchase a cigar. At that
time, the victim was removing money from his safe and thought
that the person purchasing the cigar saw him counting the
money. According to the victim, approximately thirty minutes
later, the offender walked into the store holding a gun and
said, "I want the money. . . All the money you take
[sic] from the safe." The offender then took the money
from the victim's pockets, pointed a gun to his leg, and
demanded that he let him enter the gas station's office.
After approximately fifteen minutes, another customer drove
up to the gas station, and the offender ran. The victim
described the offender as a black male who was approximately
five feet, eleven inches tall, and weighed approximately one
hundred fifty or one hundred seventy pounds. The victim
stated that the person who robbed him was wearing a makeshift
mask that covered his face during the robbery. The deputy
immediately ran the license plate number given to him by the
victim through dispatch and learned that the defendant was
listed as its registered owner.

Deputy
Fontenot proceeded to the address listed for the defendant
where he met Detective Malcolm Wolfe and Captain Dawn Foret.
Detective Cody Voison was also at the residence and briefly
spoke with subjects Amos Washington, Kerry Lyons, Richard
Shelby, and Alexander Barrow. Neither the defendant nor the
vehicle registered to him were at the residence, but Deputy
Fontenot noticed that Lyons matched the description of the
offender given by the victim. Once Detective Voison arrived
at the residence, Lyons was placed in handcuffs and advised
of his Miranda rights.[2] Lyons was
transported to the Chevron gas station, where the victim
identified him as the individual who purchased a cigar prior
to the armed robbery. The victim believed the individual who
purchased the cigar was the same individual who robbed him.
Lyons was then transported to the sheriffs office.

Shortly
thereafter, Deputy Fontenot was ordered to return to the
defendant's residence to transport the defendant to the
sheriffs office. When Deputy Fontenot returned to the
residence, the defendant and the vehicle matching the
description and license plate number given by the victim were
present. The deputy transported the defendant to the sheriffs
office and brought him into the interview room. Under the
supervision of Detective Wolfe, Lyons was permitted to speak
to the defendant. The defendant subsequently confessed to
committing the robbery.

A
search of the defendant's residence was conducted and a
handgun magazine as well as approximately sixty-seven grams
of marijuana were located. The defendant testified that he
threw the money out of his window while driving because he
"got scared[.]"

MOTION
TO SUPPRESS

In his
sole assignment of error, the defendant argues that the
district court erred in denying the motion to suppress his
confession. Specifically, the defendant contends that his
confession was not free and voluntary because it was
"made under duress of fear for his family's
safety[.]" According to the defendant, ...

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